Device for adjusting the temperature

ABSTRACT

An arrangement for regulating the temperature inside a vehicle includes a casing containing a heat exchanger and a transverseflow blower for moving air through the heat exchanger. The blower includes an impeller and the casing has a guide wall opposite the impeller which starts at a point close to the impeller and extends in a spiral of increasing radius through an angle of about 180* around the impeller axis and has a continuation tangent to its end remote from the impeller. A wedge-shaped vortex-forming tongue has a surface on its suction side which faces the impeller and forms therewith a passage diverging in the direction of impeller rotation. A guide plate opposite the surface of the tongue on the suction side forms with such surface a channel which converges from the discharge side towards the suction side and runs approximately tangential to the periphery of the impeller.

United States Patent Zenkner 1 Mar. 7 1972 [54] DEVICE FOR ADJUSTING THE 3,329,678 7/1967 De Castelet ..98/2.07 TEMPERATURE 3,472,146 10/1969 Mazurkiewick ..98/2.06

[72] Inventor: Kurt Zenkner. Hertzstrasse l2, Ettlingen, pn'mwy Emmine, Meyer Peru Germany Artorney-Jennings Bailey, in

22 F1 d: 8,1970 1 57] ABSTRACT [21] Appl. No.: 1,454 An arrangement for regulating the temperature inside a vehicle includes a casing containing a heat exchanger and a trans- [30] Foreign Application Priority Data verse-flow blower for moving air through the heat exchanger. The blower includes an impeller and the casing has a guide 1969 Germany 41 560 wall opposite the impeller which starts at a point close to the impeller and extends in a spiral of increasing radius through an U.S.Cl angle of about around the impeller axis and has a com [58] Field Search 07 2 08 tinuation tangent to its end remote from the impeller. A

""""""""""" i l wedge-shaped vortex-forming tongue has a surface on its suction side which faces the impeller and forms therewith a passage diverging in the direction of impeller rotation. A guide [561 Cited plate opposite the surface of the tongue on the suction side TE STATES PATENTS forms with such surface a channel which converges from the discharge side towards the suction side and runs approximate- 2,796,820 6/1957 Moore ..98/2.07

Laing..... ...98/2.07 Orr ..98/2.07

ly tangential to the periphery of the impeller.

36 Claims, 20 Drawing Figures IAIENHHMAH 7 H172 fllllll I III 3 IN VEN TOR. KURT ZENK/VER DEVICE FOR ADJUSTING THE TEMPERATURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for adjusting the temperature, and especially to a heating device on motor vehicles for adjusting the temperature inside the vehicle. More particularly the invention relates to a device comprising a transverse flow blower for conveying air, a heat-exchanger system which may, for instance, consist of a heat-exchanger element in which the fresh air delivered by the blower is brought into heat-exchanging cooperation with a heat-conveying medium, and an air duct which introduces the air treated in the heat-exchanger into the interior of the vehicle to be heated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to avoid the disadvantages of known comparable arrangements, namely the disadvantage that the static pressure required to compensate the high static pressure losses can only be produced by considerably increasing the speed of the air blower which would result in a further increase of the already high noise produced by the system.

It is another object of the invention to provide a device of the general character described which is characterized in that for conveying the air there is provided a transverse-flow blower of the type in which directly downstream of the blower inlet the guiding wall begins to bulge away from the circumference of the impeller, the distance between the said impeller or rotor and the said guiding wall gradually increasing so that, finally, the guiding wall assumes a spiral form, and in which the angle between the tangent to the starting point of the guide wall and the tangent to the terminal point of the guide wall is less than 90, the radii from the center of the impeller to the points of contact of the tangents including between them an angle of approximately 180, and in which, further, a vortex forming means is provided such as a wedge-shaped tongue which covers only the smallest possible surface area of the circumference of the impeller and the effective area of the vortex forming tongue on the suction side forms with the circumference of the impeller a gap diverging in the direction of impeller rotation and encloses with the area of the vortex forming tongue on the discharge or pressure side an acute angle of l to 60, wherein the length of the heat-exchanger which may be disposed at the discharge or the suction side of the blower is approximately equal to the axial length of the blower, and wherein the space containing the blower and the heat-exchanger is provided with inlet openings for the untreated air at the suction side of the blower and outlet openings for the treated air at the side facing the interior of the vehicle, the driving motor of the blower being disposed coaxially with the impeller of the blower and outside the airflow between the inlet and the outlet openings and preferably shielded with respect to the said airflow.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an arrangement of the general character described which affords the advantage of eliminating the high noise production typical for the arrangements of the prior art, thus enabling the impeller of the blower to be run at a considerably higher speed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a device of the type here in question in which the motor is no longer located within the airflow so that a higher output is obtained since, as is well known, the output of a blower varies as the cube of the speed, thus, there being obtained the advantage that a greater volume of air may be delivered with the same size of motor and less noise.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the before-mentioned type in which contrary to the arrangements of the prior art which suffer from the defect that the difference between the air volume directed towards the floor of the vehicle and the volume discharged through the nozzles towards the roof or sides of the vehicle is great (a situation which has an adverse effect on passenger comfort), the steep characteristic curve of the blower and a possible deflection of the air flow enable this difference to be reduced to a point where the air will be uniformly distributed throughout the interior of the vehicle and improved regulation is achieved.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which consists of an apparatus of simple construction and high output which may take the form of a unit per se and may be used either as a heating system for heating the interior of the motor vehicle or as an air conditioning unit for conditioning the air inside the vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description thereof, whereby several embodiments of the invention are shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a sectional and diagrammatical side view of a device according to the invention,

FIG. 2 shows a modification of the invention represented in the same manner as FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a vertical section of another modified embodiment of the invention in a diagrammatic representation,

FIG. 4 is a partial front view of a detail of the arrangement according to FIG. 3 drawn to an enlarged scale,

FIG. 5 is a side view of still another modified embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 6 is a front view of the arrangement according to FIG.

FIG. 7 is a front view of a detail of yet another modified embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 8 is a section along the line VIIIVIII through the arrangement according to FIG. 7,

FIG. 9 shows the arrangement according to FIG. 7 in a section taken along the line lX-IX according to FIG. 8,

FIG. 10, FIG. 11, FIG. 12 are front views of three further modifications of the invention,

FIG. 13 is a side view of a detail of still another modification of the invention shown in diagrammatic representation,

FIG. 14, FIG. 15, FIG. 16, FIG. 17 are diagrammatically represented side views of details of further modified embodiments of the invention,

FIG. I8 is a sectional view of a detail of modification on the arrangement according to FIG. 1,

FIG. 19 is a diagrammatically represented side view showing details of the blower used with the device according to the invention as illustrated in the previously described drawings, and

FIG. 20 is a diagrammatic top view of yet another modification of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With the arrangement according to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawing, the air is conveyed by a so-called transverse flow blower 1, details of which are shown in FIG. 19 of the drawing and which contains an impeller or rotor 4 cooperating with a guide wall 5 and a vortex-forming tongue 6 which is wedge-shaped and covers only the smallest possible area of the circumference of the impeller. The axis of rotation of the impeller extends transversely to the direction in which the vehicle moves and in parallel relation to the wheel axis. It will be apparent that this transverse-flow blower is of the type in which the guide wall bulges away from the circumference of the impeller directly downstream of the inlet to the blower gradually increasing its distance to the rotor periphery until it assumes the form of a spiral and in which the angle a between the tangent Sn to die starting point of the guide wall and the tangent 5b to the end of the guide wall is less than 90", radii from the center of the impeller to the points of contact of the tangents including between them an angle a, of approximately I. With this transverse-flow blower, furthermore, the effective surface area 60 of the vortex-forming tongue on the suction side together with the circumference of the impeller forms a gap or passage 7 diverging in the direction of impeller rotation and the effective area 6b of the vortex-forming tongue on the discharge or outlet side includes an acute angle of 10 to 60. The guide wall 5 follows the line of a spiral curve whose distance from the circumference of the impeller is steadily increasing from the starting point 50 of the spiral determined by the narrowest passage or smallest distance between the guide wall 5 and the circumference of the impeller up to a maximum, the distance from the circumference of the impeller amounting to about 10 to 30 percent of the impeller radius at the starting point of the spiral, increasing by further 5 to 30 percent of impeller radius over a sector angle of approximately 60 as measured from the starting point of the guide plate, increasing again by about l to 30 percent of the impeller radius over a further sector angle of approximately 30 as measured from the starting point of the guide plate, further rising by about 20 to 35 percent of the impeller radius over a further sector angle of 30 and again by about 20 to 50 percent of the impeller radius before reaching the end of the spiral, the end of the spiral being reached at a sector angle of about I40 to 190 as measured from the starting point of the guide plate. After reaching the terminal point of the spiral, the guide wall continues either in the direction of the tangent to the end of the spiral or along a curve whose point of inflection is located within the area of the spiral end. The distance between the vortex-forming tongue and the circumference of the impeller or rotor at the point of closest approach is about to l5 percent of the outside diameter of the impeller. The sector angle on the suction side of the blower between the starting point Sc of the spiral and the point of closest approach between the circumference of the impeller and the vortexforming tongue ranges between I30 and 180. The blower shown in FIG. 19 is of the so-called highly stable transverseflow type in which the vortex-forming tongue 6 together with the circumference of the impeller and the guide plate 9 forms a channel 8 through which part of the air delivered is returned from the pressure or discharge side to the impeller in an approximately tangential direction. With another arrangement, the vortex-forming means may be provided with throughgoing open passages discharging into the return channel 8 directed tangentially with respect to the circumference of the impeller or else the wedge-shaped vortex-forming tongue 6 may be hollow and provided with inlet openings on the discharge side and outlet openings on the suction side which discharge into the return channel directed tangentially with respect to the circumference of the impeller. Furthermore, a feature which all these arrangements have in common is that the spacing of the blades in the direction of the circumference of the rotor or the blower is less than the length of the blades, the ratio between the length of the blades and the circular pitch or blade spacing being that of the numbers 10 on the one hand and 9 or less on the other hand, i.e., complying approximately to the fonnula t/l 0.9 where r is the circular pitch of blade spacing and I is the length of the blades. The ratio of the inside diameter to the outside diameter of the impeller is at least 0.8, the proportion of these two values conforming approximately to the formula di/da 0.8, where di is the inside diameter and do is the outside diameter of the impeller or rotor. The blades of the impeller are set at an entrance angle 5, of approximately 90 and exit angle B, of less than 45, an advantageous arrangement being one in which the exit angle ranges between 20 and 35 preferably between 26 and 31 to 33. Furthermore, the blades of the impeller are curved so that the straight line 11 through the blade tip 10a and the blade root 10b forms an angle of less than 45 and preferably 22'' to 26 with the diameter passing through the blade root 10b.

in all embodiments of the invention shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings, the impeller takes the form of an elongated cylinder drum whose length is greater than twice the diameter.

in the arrangement according to FIGS. 1 and 2, the space 16 or containing the blower and the heat exchanger system 14 or 15, respectively, is provided with inlet openings 17, [7a for fresh air on the side facing the outside air and with outlet openings 18 for heated air on the side facing the interior of the vehicle or the passenger compartment between which a continuous flow of air is maintained while the blower is operating. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6, the arrangement according to the invention is such that the drive motor 19 of the blower is disposed coaxially with impeller or rotor 4 and located outside the airflow streaming between the inlet opening and the outlet openings, being preferably shielded or protected with respect to said airflow.

The space 2] containing the blower and the heat exchanger maybut need not-be part of the engine compartment being located, for instance, in the region or borderline zone between the passenger compartment and the engine compartment, preferably in the region of the point from which extends the so-called windshield. This arrangement affords the advantage of entailing an additional noise reduction in as much as the engine compartment per se is soundproofed against the passenger compartment. However, if in a specific case other considerations carry more weight, this space may of course also be disposed outside the engine compartment. To provide for additional attenuation of sound, the drive motor of the blower may be enclosed, at least partially, by walls or wall portions of sound-insulating material or lined with such a material which material is also used to line the walls of the air discharge duct.

To prevent noise production and to suppress the transmission of noise to the passenger compartment as far as possible, the invention provides for the drive motor 19 (see FIG. 6) of the blower to be flexibly or yieldingly or elastically supported on the casing by mounting its axial end facing the blower on a plate 25 secured to the casing by means of flexible or elastical elements 26 which take the form of so-called rubber-bonded metal elements. With the embodiment according to FIG. 20, the motor 27 is circumferencially secured to the casing by means of flexible or elastical elements, e.g., so-called rubberbonded metal elements 28. Furthermore, the drive motor is connected to its associated blower through the drive shaft on the one hand and through flexible elements on the other hand, the impeller or rotor 4 of the blower being supported on the drive shaft 29 of the motor with the aid of die diaphragm 30 which is restrained by the impeller shaft stub and connected to the impeller on its circumference. A shaft stub 32 is connected to the impeller through a ring 31 of artificial material it being provided on the side of the impeller facing away from the drive motor, said shaft stub 32 being fitted into a disc-type diaphragm 33 which is circumferentially restrained by the associated blower wall 34. On its axial end facing away from the blower, die drive motor 19 carries an auxiliary fan 35 in the form of an axial flow propeller which cools the motor. This arrangement results in a compact unit which, with les noise, produces a considerably higher output in terms of air delivery than comparable arrangements of the prior art. The new arrangement provides for perfect compensation of the high pres sure losses through the nozzle and the heat exchanger which cannot be avoided in arrangements of this type. Noise is reduced by the flexible suspension of the elements on the one hand and by means of sound-absorbing means on the other hand which are built in. The noise level is further reduced by the fact that the motor is no longer located within the airflow which permits the blower to be operated at considerably higher speeds. According to the invention, the throughput may be varied by changing, e.g., increasing, the length of the drum. In other words, it is no longer necessary to increase the speed, and thus the noise level, in order to change the throughput as is the case with the usual devices of the prior art.

In various embodiments of the invention shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings, the device according to the invention invariably takes the form of a heating device for the interior of vehicles, in which case the heat exchanger is connected to an already existing closed circuit in the motor vehicle which carries a hot medium which in this is used to heat the air conveyed by the blower. It is, however, also possi' ble to connect the heat exchanger to a circuit containing a refrigerant in which case the heat exchanger forms part of an air conditioning unit. The heat exchanger may be disposed either upstream or downstream of the blower. If necessary on account of space considerations, the heat exchanger may be divided into two halves disposed upstream and downstream of the air blower.

In FIG. I, of the accompanying drawings, the heat exchanger system 14 consists of a single heat exchanger element disposed at an angle to the direction of the inflowing air so that the direction of discharge towards the blower and the direction of flow through the heat exchanger are at an angle to each other. In the embodiment shown by way of example in FIG. 2 of the accompanying drawings, the two heat exchangers 15a, 15b of the heat exchanger system are disposed up stream of the air blower l as viewed in the direction of flow of the air to be treated. It is, however, also possible to dispose both heat exchangers downstream of the air blower or to select an arrangement in which one heat exchanger element is located upstream and the other heat exchanger element is downstream of the air blower. The disposition of the heat exchanger elements within the casing of the device is such that the direction of flow through them is approximately transverse to the general direction of flow through the casing of the device, the air guiding passages or channels between the inlet openings and the outlet openings of the two heat exchanger elements extending approximately transverse to the direction of the airflow between the inlet 174, which connects the system or device with the air outside the vehicle, or the inlet 17b, which connects the system or device to the interior of the vehicle, on the one hand and the outlet 18a of the casing of the device, which opens into the interior of the vehicle, on the other hand. lt will be apparent that the air coming from the inlet 17a, upon entering into the heat exchanger element in which circulates the hot medium, is deflected by 90 or approximately 90", while the air leaving one of the two heat exchanger elements is also deflected by 90 or approximately 90 on its way to the air blower. The two heat exchanger elements are disposed opposite each other at approximately the same level. They extend diagonally to a vertical plane with which they form an acute angle and include between them a passage 40 leading from the inlet 17a to the air blower 1. Their air outlet openings 36a, 361) are directed towards each other, whereas their air inlet openings 37a, 37!; are directed away from each other. The air inlet opening 37b of the heat exchanger element 15b through which circulates the refrigerant are shut off from or protected against the inlet 17a since the lateral confining wall 38 which forms the upper end of the heat exchanger element 15b is connected to the wall portion 39 which acts as a barrier separating the two outlet openings 17a and 17b provided in walls of the casing disposed approximately at right angles to each other. Accordingly, the overall arrangement is such that the inlet sides 37a, 37b of the two heat exchanger elements 15a, 15b, which in a section through a vertical plane have the form of an oblong rectangle placed on edge having a longitudinal center line extending diagonally to a vertical plane and being inclined in the direction of forward travel and from top to bottom are facing two opposite sidewalls 39a, 39b of the casing of the device, of which the one wall 39b contains the opening 17!: which connects the device to the interior of the vehicle and is associated with the heat exchanger element 15b in which circulates the refrigerant, while the other wall 390 is associated with the heat exchanger element 150 in which circulates the hot fluid. The upper end side of the heat exchanger element 150 faces the inlet opening l7a which connects the device to the outside air, while the lower end sides of the two heat exchanger elements are associated with the air blower 1. Thus, in the arrangement according to FIG. 2, the blower, the heat exchanger, and the air guiding means are grouped into or associated to form a compact integral unit contained in a casing or housing in the form of a flat prismatic body which at its end opposite to the inlet area for the untreated air houses the blower l and in the interior of which the air sucked or taken in through the heat exchanger system is deflected by ISO in the region of the blower. The blower is followed by a plenum or distributor chamber 41 with provisions for various connections, the connections 42, for example, leading to the nozzles, the connection 43 to the nozzles for the side windows, the connection 44 to other pipes, ducts, and so on. By means of a flat or curved flap 45, which can be pivoted about the axis 45a extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of the duct, the plenum 41 is separated from a branch duct 46 into which the air may enter after having been deflected by when the flap is in the corresponding position and from which it is discharged toward the floor. Depending on the position of the air control flap between its two end positions, the air leaving the blower will either flow wholly into the plenum or wholly into the branch duct or partially into the branch duct and partially into the plenum the idea being to divide the outlet duct for the air into two branches, one of which is directed towards the floor, while the other one is directed towards the roof and discharges the air into the passenger compartment, e.g., through nozzles. The motions and deflections of the air are favored and assisted by the deflector 47 on the heat exchanger element, by the guide vane or deflector plate system 48 in the region of deflection and also by the tear-shaped or dropshaped construction of the wall 49 which assists the guidance of the airflow and which has a thicker end terminating in a rounded surface towards the airflow.

Special flaps 50, 51, 52 are provided on the outlet sides of the heat exchanger elements so that in a system using two heat exchanger elements the flaps are contained between the two heat exchanger elements and disposed opposite each other on either side of the path which the air follows when it is shortcircuited from the inlet of the casing to the air blower. These flaps, which are pivoted at 51a, 52a towards the inlet for the air at the ends of the associated heat exchanger elements facing the inlet 17a, may be separately pivoted, transversely to the direction of flow, about axes disposed parallel to the axis of rotation of the air blower, the arrangement being such that the flaps may be moved to and fro between a closed position, in which they rest flat against the outlet side of the associated heat exchanger element so as to prevent the flow of air through said associated heat exchanger element, and an opened position, in which they block the passage of air through the space between the two heat exchanger elements, while permitting the flow of air through the associated heat exchanger element.

According to FIG. 18, the inlet opening connecting the device with the outside air may be provided with a control flap 60, which may be adjustable automatically, e.g., as a function of road speed, temperature etc., and/or by hand and which ensures that the volume of air entering the casing of the device is kept constant independently on road speed or wind resistance. The flap 60 according to FIG. 18 operates under the action of the spring 61. It will be apparent that the higher air pressure resulting from higher road speeds tends to reduce the passage 62 through which the air enters into the casing of the device.

The drawing (FIG. 2) shows that when both flaps 5], 52 are closed and rest against their respective heat exchanger elements, the outside air will flow from the inlet opening I70 to the blower and then enter the interior of the vehicle through the ducts and nozzles. When the flap 51 is opened (and thus blocks the passage 40) and the flap 52 is closed, the air flows from the inlet 170, after being deflected, to the heat exchanger element 15a (where it is heated) and then to the blower l to the ducts and nozzles so that the interior of the vehicle is supplied with heated fresh air. When the flap Si is closed and the flap 52 is opened (and thus blocks the passage 40) the air flows from the inlet l7b connecting this device to the interior of the vehicle through the heat exchanger element 15b, in which circulates the refrigerant, to the blower 1 and then back into the interior of the vehicle through the system of ducts and nozzles so that the air in the interior of the vehicle is coded and conditioned.

FIG. 3 of the accompanying drawing shows approximately the same arrangement as illustrated in FIG. 2, i.e., a device with a diagonally and obliquely disposed heat exchanger element 60 associated with a control flap 61. The numeral 62 indicates the blower, 63 the guttiform or tear-shaped wall portion, 64 the guide wall system associated with the air deflection arrangement and the branch duct 65. In this case the heat exchanger element is provided with a filter 66, e.g., a platetype filter, which is preferably disposed on that side of the heat exchanger element which faces the blower. This filter may also be used to humidify the air and may be provided with a drip tray 67 if the arrangement of the associated heat exchanger element is a steep one.

In the arrangement according to FIG. of the accompanying drawing, a single heat exchanger element is associated with the blower. The air enters at 68 and flows through the blower, whereupon part is discharged through the connection 70 in the direction of the flow and part through the hose 71 and the nozzle 72, depending on the position of the control flap 69.

As shown in FIG. 7, the blower may consist of at least one high-pressure section 80 discharging the air through nozzles, said high-pressure section delivering less mass and less volume and being rarely used for heating, and at least one low-pressure section 81 which discharges towards the floor. In this arrangement, the impeller is subdivided into corresponding sections whose mode of operation whether high-pressure or lowpressure, is determined by the location and design of the vortex-forming tongue. In the arrangement according to FIG. 8, the shape of the vortex-forming tongue 82 is such that the blower operates in the low-pressure range. In the arrangement according to Hg. 9, the shape and location of the vortex-forming tongue 83, which together with the impeller 84 and the guide plate 85 forms a return channel 86, cause the blower to operate in the high-pressure range. According to FIG. 10, high-pressure sections 87, 88 may be provided at both axial ends of the low-pressure section 89. According to FIG. 11, it is also possible to provide one high-pressure section 90 (fresh air, heating, and humidiiication) at one axial end of the lowpressure section 91. According to FIG. 12, the impeller 92 of the high-pressure section may be provided with a larger diameter than the impeller 93 of the low-pressure section. In this case the impeller with the longer diameter is intended for special noule for even higher pressure. According to FIG. 13, the mode of operation, whether low-pressure or high-pressure, may be determined by the position of the adjustable, e.g., pivotable or swingable vortex-forming tongue 94. With the vortex-forming tongue positioned as indicated by the full lines the unit operates in the high-pressure range, while the position 95 illustrated by the dash lines indicates low-pressure opera tion. A possible arrangement is one in which the position of the vortex-fonning tongue is changed when the nozzles are switched on, for example.

Various embodiments of the vortex-forming tongue are illustrated in FIGS. 14 to l7. In the arrangement according to FIG. 14, the vortex-forming tongue is associated with a guide plate 102 which assists in forming the previously mentioned return channel 103. In the arrangement according to FIG. 15, the return of medium from the discharge or pressure side to the suction side is effected through openings 104 on the discharge side of the vortex-forming means 105 is formed of plates having openings I06 between them on the suction side of the vortex-forming tongue. In FIG. 17, the wedgeshaped vortex-forming means is provided with open passages 1060 which discharge into the return channel disposed tangentially to the circumference of the impeller and which extend in the longitudinal direction of the vortex-forming tongue, a particularly advantageous arrangement being one in which said open channels are contained between wall portions I07 of the vortex-forming means which gradually converge in the direction of the impeller. In this case the general direction remains always tangential. The above advantages are further enchanced if the return channel converges from the discharge or pressure side to the suction side. A further improvement is obtained by the arrangement in which, as shown in FIG. 16, the discharge-side leg of the vortex-forming tongue together with the extension 111 of the guiding duct forms an outlet duct with a convergence starting at the region of the outlet flow leaving the blower and which accelerates the flow leaving the blower, the length of the converging section of the outlet duct amounting to approximately 0.75 to L25 times the radius of the impeller.

The outlet openings of the casing containing the blower may be provided with adjustable couvres or laminae which can be adjusted into more or less oblique positions.

Having, thus, fully disclosed my invention, what I claim is:

I. A device for adjusting the temperature comprising a casing having an air inlet and containing a transverse-flow blower for conveying air and including an impeller and a guide wall opposite the impeller, a heat exchanger system in the casing in which the air conveyed by the blower is brought into heatexchanging interaction with a heat transporting medium, and an air guiding duct which introduces the air treated in the heat exchanger system into the interior of the vehicle, wherein directly downstream of the inlet the guide wall bulges away from the circumference of the impeller gradually increasing its distance from the impeller periphery and assumes a spiral form and in which the angle between the tangent to the starting point of the guide wall and the tangent to the terminal point of the guide wall is less than 90, the radii from the center of the impeller to the points of contact of the tangents including between them an angle of approximately and in which a vortex-forming means which covers only a small area of the circumference of the impeller and the effective surface of the vortex-forming means on the suction side together with the circumference of the impeller forms a passage diverging in the direction of impeller rotation and includes with the surface of the vortex-forming means on the discharge side an acute angle of IO to 60, and wherein the length of die heat exchanger is approximately equal to the axial length of the blower and the casing is provided with inlet openings for the untreated air on the suction side of the blower constituting said inlet and outlet openings for the treated air on the side facing the passenger compartment connected with said air guiding duct, a drive motor of the blower disposed coaxially with the impeller of the blower and located outside the air flow between the inlet and the outlet openings.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the guide wall follows the shape of a spiral curve whose distance from the circumference of the impeller increases steadily from the starting point of the spiral determined by the point of narrowest pasage between the guide wall and the circumference of the impeller up to a maximum, the distance from the circumference of the impeller amounting to approximately ID to 30 percent of the impeller radius at the starting point of the spiral, increasing by a further 5 to 30 percent of the impeller radius over a sector angle of about 60 as measured from the starting point of the guide plate, increasing again by about ID to 30 percent of the impeller radius over a further sector angle of approximately 30 as measured from the starting point of the guide wall, then rising about 20 to 35 percent of the impeller radius over a further sector angle of 30 and increasing again by about 20 to 50 percent of the impeller radius before reaching the end of the spiral, the end of the spiral being reached at a sector angle of about 140 to as measured from the starting point of the guide wall, said guide wall having an extension continuing from said end of the spiral along a line merging smoothly with the end of the spiral, the distance between the circumference of die impeller and the vortexforming means at the point of closest approach amounting to about 5 to I5 percent of the outside diameter of the impeller and the sector angle on the suction side between the starting point of the spiral and the point of smallest distance between the circumference of the impeller and the vortex-forming means being between l 30' and l 80".

3. A device a claimed in claim 1, wherein the vortex-fomring means of the blower forms a return channel means with the circumference of the impeller through which part of the air delivered is returned from the discharge side to the impeller in a direction approximately tangential to the circumference of the impeller and which converges from the discharge side towards the suction side.

4. A device as claimed in claim 3, a guide plate opposite the effective surface of the wedge-shaped vortex-forming means on the suction side which together with said effective surface forms a channel which converges from the discharge side towards the suction side, said channel serving to return part of the air flow from the discharge side to the suction side and being approximately tangential to the circumference of the impeller.

5. A device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the return channel means comprises a plurality of passages through the vortex-forming means within the opening on the discharge side and outlet openings on the suction side opening into the return channel disposed tangentially of the circumference of the impeller.

6. Device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the return channel means comprises a plurality of opening passages through the vortex-forming means which discharge into the return channel disposed tangentially of the circumference of the impeller and which extend in the longitudinal direction of the vortex-forming means, said passages being contained between wall portions of the vortex-forming means which gradually converge towards the impeller.

7. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the leg of the vortex-forming means is a tongue which on the discharge side forms an outlet duct with the guide wall extension, said outlet duct converging starting in the region of the blower outlet and of the flow of air leaving the blower and thereby accelerating the said flow, the length of the converging section of said outlet duct being equal to about 0.75 to [.25 times the radius of the impeller.

8. A device as claimed in claim I, wherein the impeller of the blower comprises an elongated cylinder drum whose length is greater than twice the diameter.

9. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blade spacing of the blower is less than the blade length and the ratio between the blade length and the spacing of the blades is approximately in accordance with formula III 0.9 where t is the circular pitch or spacing of the blades and l is the blade length.

10. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the ratio of the inside diameter to the outside diameter of the impeller of the blower is at least 0.8 to I.

ll. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blades of the impeller of the blower are set at a blade entrance angle 3; which is less than 45 12. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blades of the impeller of the blower are set at a blade exit angle B, which is less than 45.

13. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blades of the impeller of the blower are so curved that the straight line drawn through the blade tip and the blade root forms an angle of less than 45 with the diameter passing through the blade root.

[4. A device as claimed in claim I, wherein the axis of rotation of the air blower extends transversely to the direction in which the vehicle moves and in approximately parallel relation to the wheel axles.

IS. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the casing containing the blower with the heat exchanger forms part of the engine compartment of the vehicle.

16. A device as claimed in claim 1, having means mounting the drive motor of the blower flexibly on the casing, said mounting means comprising rubber-bonded metal elements.

17 A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive motor is connected to the blower through a drive shaft and through flexible elements.

[8. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a shaft connects the motor to the impeller, said impeller having stub portions of said shaft projecting therefrom, and diaphragm: fixedly connected to the impeller shaft stub portions, each of said diaphragms being secured to the associated wall of the casing.

19. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a shaft connects the motor to the impeller, said impeller having a stub portion of said shaft projection therefrom, a ring of artificial material connecting said stub portion to the impeller, said ring of artificial material being located at the side of the blower impeller facing away from the drive motor, a disc-type diaphragm which is circumferentially restrained by the associated wall of the blower, said stub portion fitting in said diaphragm.

20. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the direction of flow to the blower and the direction of flow through the heat exchanger extend diagonally and obliquely to each other.

21. A device as claimed in claim 20, wherein the outlet duct for the air is divided into two duct branches, one of said branches being directed downwards towards the floor while the other branch is directed towards the roof and opens into the passenger compartment.

22. A device as claimed in claim 21, wherein a control flap is provided between the two duct branches, said control flap being pivotable about an axis transverse to the longitudinal direction of the duct and adjustable between two end positions in which it automatically shuts oh the inlet to the one duct or to the other one, whereby to regulate and determine the proportions of the air flowing through the two duct branches.

23. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the blower, the heat exchanger, and the air guiding means are grouped into a compact integral unit contained in said casing, the blower being disposed at the end of said casing located opposite the inlet and the casing including means to deflect the air taken in through the heat exchanger system by approximately in the interior of the casing in the region of the blower, and wherein the air guiding duct includes a distributor chamber downstream from the blower and a branch connected to said chamber, said chamber being provided with an adjustable shutting off element whereby said chamber may be separated from said branch duct, said shutting off element deflecting the air by 180 when the flap is in position to direct air into said branch duct.

24. A device as claimed in claim 23, wherein guide vanes are provided to enhance the inflow of the air into the heat exchanger and/or the deflection of the air between the blower outlet and the branch duct.

25. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive motor of the blower is at least partially enclosed by sound-insulating material.

26. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the outlet openings of the casing containing the blower are provided with adjustable louvres which may be directed obliquely with respect to the outlet flow direction.

27. A device as claimed in claim I, wherein the heat exchanger system consists of a single heat exchanger element disposed diagonally and obliquely to the direction of the inflowing air.

28. A device as claimed in claim I, wherein the heat exchanger system comprises two heat exchanger elements disposed upstream of the blower, one of the said heat exchanger elements being traversed by air to be heated by a hot medium, while the other one is traversed by air to be cooled and a refrigerant, and wherein said heat exchanger system includes an adjustable flap-type element whereby the airflow can be selectively directed past one of the two heat exchanger elements, depending on the position of said flaptype element.

29. A device as claimed in claim 28, wherein the two heat exchanger elements of the heat exchanging system are disposed opposite each other at approximately the same height and with the air outlets facing each other and wherein between them said heat exchanger elements include a passage leading from the inlet of the casing of the device to the air blower.

30. A device as claimed in claim 28, wherein each of the two heat exchanger elements is provided with a flap associated with the outlet side of the associated heat exchanger element, said flaps being separately pivotable transversely to the direction of flow about axes disposed in parallel relation to the axis of rotation of the air blower whereby they may be alternately moved to and fro between a closed position, in which they block the passage of air through the associated heat exchanger element, and an open position, in which they permit the air to pass through the associated heat exchanger element.

31. A device as claimed in claim 30, wherein the flaps associated with the two heat exchanger elements are disposed opposite each other on either side of the path followed by the air when short-circuited from the inlet of the casing through the air blower.

32. A device as claimed in claim I, wherein a filter is disposed on the heat exchanger element, said filter including means to humidity the air.

33. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the blower comprises at least one high-pressure section discharging the air upward and at least one low-pressure section discharging the air towards the floor.

34. A device as claimed in claim 33, wherein a high-pressure section is provided at both axial ends.

35. device as claimed in claim I, wherein the inlet is provided with a control flap which may be adjusted.

36. A device as claimed in claim I, in which the vortexforming means is a wedge-shaped tongue.

I t i i Q 

1. A device for adjusting the temperature comprising a casing having an air inlet and containing a transverse-flow blower for conveying air and including an impeller and a guide wall opposite the impeller, a heat exchanger system in the casing in which the air conveyed by the blower is brought into heat-exchanging interaction with a heat transporting medium, and an air guiding duct which introduces the air treated in the heat exchanger system into the interior of the vehicle, wherein directly downstream of the inlet the guide wall bulges away from the circumference of the impeller gradually increasing its distance from the impeller periphery and assumes a spiral form and in which the angle between the tangent to the starting point of the guide wall and the tangent to the terminal point of the guide wall is less than 90*, the radii from the center of the impeller to the points of contact of the tangents including between them an angle of approximately 180*, and in which a vortex-forming means which covers only a small area of the circumference of the impeller and the effective surface of the vortex-forming means on the suction side together with the circumference of the impeller forms a passage diverging in the direction of impeller rotation and includes with the surface of the vortex-forming means on the discharge side an acute angle of 10* to 60*, and wherein the length of the heat exchanger is approximately equal to the axial length of the blower and the casing is provided with inlet openings for the untreated air on the suction side of the blower constituting said inlet and outlet openings for the treated air on the side facing the passenger compartment connected with said air guiding duct, a drive motor of the blower disposed coaxially with the impeller of the blower and located outside the air flow between the inlet and the outlet openings.
 2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the guide wall follows the shape of a spiral curve whose distance from the circumference of the impeller increases steadily from the starting point of the spiral determined by the point of narrowest passage between the guide wall and the circumference of the impeller up to a maximum, the distance from the circumference of the impeller amounting to approximately 10 to 30 percent of the impeller radius at the starting point of the spiral, increasing by a further 5 to 30 percent of the impeller radius over a sector angle of about 60* as measured from the starting point of the guide plate, increasing again by about 10 to 30 percent of the impeller radius over a further sector angle of approximately 30* as measured from the starting point of the guide wall, then rising about 20 to 35 percent of the impeller radius over a further sector angle of 30* and increasing again by about 20 to 50 percent of the impeller radius before reaching the end of the spiral, the end of the spiral being reached at a sector angle of about 140* to 190* as measured from the starting point of the guide wall, said guide wall having an extension continuing from said end of the spIral along a line merging smoothly with the end of the spiral, the distance between the circumference of the impeller and the vortex-forming means at the point of closest approach amounting to about 5 to 15 percent of the outside diameter of the impeller and the sector angle on the suction side between the starting point of the spiral and the point of smallest distance between the circumference of the impeller and the vortex-forming means being between 130* and 180*.
 3. A device a claimed in claim 1, wherein the vortex-forming means of the blower forms a return channel means with the circumference of the impeller through which part of the air delivered is returned from the discharge side to the impeller in a direction approximately tangential to the circumference of the impeller and which converges from the discharge side towards the suction side.
 4. A device as claimed in claim 3, a guide plate opposite the effective surface of the wedge-shaped vortex-forming means on the suction side which together with said effective surface forms a channel which converges from the discharge side towards the suction side, said channel serving to return part of the air flow from the discharge side to the suction side and being approximately tangential to the circumference of the impeller.
 5. A device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the return channel means comprises a plurality of passages through the vortex-forming means within the opening on the discharge side and outlet openings on the suction side opening into the return channel disposed tangentially of the circumference of the impeller.
 6. Device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the return channel means comprises a plurality of opening passages through the vortex-forming means which discharge into the return channel disposed tangentially of the circumference of the impeller and which extend in the longitudinal direction of the vortex-forming means, said passages being contained between wall portions of the vortex-forming means which gradually converge towards the impeller.
 7. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the leg of the vortex-forming means is a tongue which on the discharge side forms an outlet duct with the guide wall extension, said outlet duct converging starting in the region of the blower outlet and of the flow of air leaving the blower and thereby accelerating the said flow, the length of the converging section of said outlet duct being equal to about 0.75 to 1.25 times the radius of the impeller.
 8. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the impeller of the blower comprises an elongated cylinder drum whose length is greater than twice the diameter.
 9. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blade spacing of the blower is less than the blade length and the ratio between the blade length and the spacing of the blades is approximately in accordance with formula t/l < 0.9 where t is the circular pitch or spacing of the blades and l is the blade length.
 10. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the ratio of the inside diameter to the outside diameter of the impeller of the blower is at least 0.8 to
 1. 11. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blades of the impeller of the blower are set at a blade entrance angle Beta 2 which is less than 45*
 12. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blades of the impeller of the blower are set at a blade exit angle Beta 2 which is less than 45*.
 13. A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the blades of the impeller of the blower are so curved that the straight line drawn through the blade tip and the blade root forms an angle of less than 45* with the diameter passing through the blade root.
 14. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the axis of rotation of the air blower extends transversely to the direction in which the vehicle moves and in approximately parallel relation to the wheel axles.
 15. A device as claiMed in claim 1, wherein the casing containing the blower with the heat exchanger forms part of the engine compartment of the vehicle.
 16. A device as claimed in claim 1, having means mounting the drive motor of the blower flexibly on the casing, said mounting means comprising rubber-bonded metal elements.
 17. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive motor is connected to the blower through a drive shaft and through flexible elements.
 18. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a shaft connects the motor to the impeller, said impeller having stub portions of said shaft projecting therefrom, and diaphragms fixedly connected to the impeller shaft stub portions, each of said diaphragms being secured to the associated wall of the casing.
 19. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a shaft connects the motor to the impeller, said impeller having a stub portion of said shaft projection therefrom, a ring of artificial material connecting said stub portion to the impeller, said ring of artificial material being located at the side of the blower impeller facing away from the drive motor, a disc-type diaphragm which is circumferentially restrained by the associated wall of the blower, said stub portion fitting in said diaphragm.
 20. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the direction of flow to the blower and the direction of flow through the heat exchanger extend diagonally and obliquely to each other.
 21. A device as claimed in claim 20, wherein the outlet duct for the air is divided into two duct branches, one of said branches being directed downwards towards the floor while the other branch is directed towards the roof and opens into the passenger compartment.
 22. A device as claimed in claim 21, wherein a control flap is provided between the two duct branches, said control flap being pivotable about an axis transverse to the longitudinal direction of the duct and adjustable between two end positions in which it automatically shuts off the inlet to the one duct or to the other one, whereby to regulate and determine the proportions of the air flowing through the two duct branches.
 23. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the blower, the heat exchanger, and the air guiding means are grouped into a compact integral unit contained in said casing, the blower being disposed at the end of said casing located opposite the inlet and the casing including means to deflect the air taken in through the heat exchanger system by approximately 180* in the interior of the casing in the region of the blower, and wherein the air guiding duct includes a distributor chamber downstream from the blower and a branch connected to said chamber, said chamber being provided with an adjustable shutting off element whereby said chamber may be separated from said branch duct, said shutting off element deflecting the air by 180* when the flap is in position to direct air into said branch duct.
 24. A device as claimed in claim 23, wherein guide vanes are provided to enhance the inflow of the air into the heat exchanger and/or the deflection of the air between the blower outlet and the branch duct.
 25. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive motor of the blower is at least partially enclosed by sound-insulating material.
 26. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the outlet openings of the casing containing the blower are provided with adjustable louvres which may be directed obliquely with respect to the outlet flow direction.
 27. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger system consists of a single heat exchanger element disposed diagonally and obliquely to the direction of the inflowing air.
 28. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger system comprises two heat exchanger elements disposed upstream of the blower, one of the said heat exchanger elements being traversed by air to be heated by a hot medium, while the other one is traversed by air to be cooled and a refrigerant, and wherein said heAt exchanger system includes an adjustable flap-type element whereby the airflow can be selectively directed past one of the two heat exchanger elements, depending on the position of said flap-type element.
 29. A device as claimed in claim 28, wherein the two heat exchanger elements of the heat exchanging system are disposed opposite each other at approximately the same height and with the air outlets facing each other and wherein between them said heat exchanger elements include a passage leading from the inlet of the casing of the device to the air blower.
 30. A device as claimed in claim 28, wherein each of the two heat exchanger elements is provided with a flap associated with the outlet side of the associated heat exchanger element, said flaps being separately pivotable transversely to the direction of flow about axes disposed in parallel relation to the axis of rotation of the air blower whereby they may be alternately moved to and fro between a closed position, in which they block the passage of air through the associated heat exchanger element, and an open position, in which they permit the air to pass through the associated heat exchanger element.
 31. A device as claimed in claim 30, wherein the flaps associated with the two heat exchanger elements are disposed opposite each other on either side of the path followed by the air when short-circuited from the inlet of the casing through the air blower.
 32. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a filter is disposed on the heat exchanger element, said filter including means to humidify the air.
 33. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the blower comprises at least one high-pressure section discharging the air upward and at least one low-pressure section discharging the air towards the floor.
 34. A device as claimed in claim 33, wherein a high-pressure section is provided at both axial ends.
 35. device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inlet is provided with a control flap which may be adjusted.
 36. A device as claimed in claim 1, in which the vortex-forming means is a wedge-shaped tongue. 